DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER
LA JOYA —La Joya Palmview’s and Edinburg North’s baseball teams are each going through growing pains.
When the two met Tuesday night for a non-district contest, the Lobos’ lineup included a freshman, four players who were backups last year, and two players who were on junior varsity last year. North, meanwhile, started two sophomores and a freshman.
On this particular evening, Palmview persevered, 10-6, at home, largely because it had its ace, junior right-hander Leo Perez, in stock. North is very much in an evaluation stage, particularly at pitcher and catcher, and it showed.
Aside from a five-run fifth inning by North (4-3) that was littered with Palmview (3-3-1) errors, the Lobos otherwise played impressive baseball in a game coach Rick Garcia did not know what to expect going in.
“There’s a lot of things we have to work on and cover, but the young ones are starting to learn what it takes to play ball as a team,” Garcia said. “Traveling ball is a different look than high school, and they have to understand this is their team. Not summer ball. Once we unite in that, we can be as strong as we’ve been in the past.”
The Lobos, Class 6A regional quarterfinalists last year, only ran into trouble in the fifth, when three errors accounted for runs. Aside from that, there were two misplays on balls to center field that kept the inning alive.
“Our guys need to understand there are certain rules per position that we need to apply,” Garcia said. “For instance, our centerfielder lets the ball drop because he thought the right fielder called him off. Our rule is that’s the centerfielder’s call. It’s a miscommunication between young kids, but once that understanding comes we can be a strong team.”
The Lobos were able to take advantage of spotty location from freshman starter Marc Esquivel and sophomore reliever Abram Lopez. Esquivel lasted 3 2/3 innings and surrendered seven runs (six earned) on eight hits while striking out six and walking five, and Lopez allowed three more runs in two innings while striking out one and giving up four hits.
Esquivel and Lopez are expected to add depth behind a North rotation led by Carlo Servin.
“We tell our guys no one’s job is safe,” North coach Damian Gonzalez said. “But we’re making strides. Every game, we want to improve on something.”
Perez threw three scoreless innings to start the game, striking out four and allowing one hit, before being removed with a 4-0 lead for reliever Jesus Guzman. That was Garcia’s plan as he wanted a look at more pitchers.
Jesus Guzman and Mario Guzman, who each threw two innings, will be counted on to play significant roles behind Perez and No. 2 pitcher Elias Ovalle, who, along with senior shortstop Steve Pena, is out with an injury.
Perez, who had a three-run bomb and went 2-for-3 with a walk, said he liked the team’s fight, particularly after surrendering the five-run frame that cut the lead to 7-5, and is optimistic about what’s coming. While defense remains a concern, the Lobos’ offense seems in late-season form as Palmview pounded out 12 hits against three Cougar pitchers with varying velocity.
“It’s all a process, and it begins with setting a personal standard,” Perez said. “If each one of us can do that, it only helps the team. If we’re setting high expectations individually, we can build a pretty dangerous team.”